Ragan on the hunt for good Chicago finish

Driver heads to Joliet after snaring gators in Louisiana

David Ragan at Chicagoland Speedway this weekend, check to see if he still has all his fingers and toes. The driver of the No. 34 Taco Bell Ford spent the days leading into the race weekend hunting gators near Lafayette, La.

The trip was an outing with friends to take a short break from the action of the Sprint Cup Series circuit

He'll be on the hunt for another good finish at the 1.5-mile track in Joliet, Ill, in Sunday's Geico 400. The Front Row Motorsports driver has one top-10 and three top-15 finishes at Chicagoland. The race will be his seventh career start at the track.

Comments from Taco Bell team driver David Ragan heading to Chicago:

"The backstretch at Chicagoland is definitely curved a little, and that's unique. I think it's great. For every mile-and-a-half track, there's a little difference in every single one of them. They call them cookie-cutter tracks, but they definitely aren't. They each have their own characteristics that you have to work on to get your car handling well and to be fast.

David Ragan, Front Row Motorsports Ford

Photo by: Action Sports Photography

"We always enjoy going to Chicagoland. The fans in Chicago really come out. It's an important market for us because it's the first Chase race. The 400-mile race allows you to race a little bit harder. You don't have to be quite as conservative as you do for a 500- or 600-mile race.

"Chicago always has some great racing. The track is aging well and beginning to have multiple lanes, but it's still a very fast mile-and-a-half track. I'm sure the Generation-6 cars will see some fast speeds. And it will be a little different in the race learning how this car reacts just like we have in a lot of these other races.

"Before we head to Chicago, I'll be doing some gator hunting in Louisiana with some friends of mine. I love doing anything in the outdoors - fishing and hunting especially. It's fun. It gets the blood pumping and the adrenaline going, that's for sure. You've definitely got to be on your toes. Or you might lose them - and more."